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METHODOLOGY
CWMP is an entirely volunteer-based project supported by Conservation Northwest, interns, and other project
partners. Though our winter monitoring season includes snow tracking techniques along I-90, the majority of
our work is accomplished through the use of remote, motion-triggered cameras. The use of motion-triggered
cameras represents an easy and verifiable method of documenting wildlife presence and has been used as a
significant research tool in many projects worldwide.
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Additionally, motion-triggered cameras provide a
tangible, low-cost way to engage citizens in wildlife monitoring and conservation. Together, our network of
volunteers and cameras provides invaluable data on the presence of rare and sensitive species. Some of our
camera installations also include devices for collecting hair samples.
STUDY AREA
This season our primary geographic focus was the Cascade Mountains in Washington, while continuing a
limited effort in the transboundary Kettle River Range. To further delineate core habitats and to give
geographic context to our survey area selections, we have defined our study area by the following boundaries:
1. North Cascades: North of Interstate-90
2. I-90 Corridor: Between Hyak and Easton along I-90
3. Southern Cascades: South of I-90
4. Kettle River Range: southeastern British Columbia and Ferry County, Washington, in the United States
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Masatoshi Yasuda, "Monitoring Diversity and Abundance of Mammals with Camera Traps: A Case Study on
Mount Tsukuba, Central Japan," Mammal Study 29, no. 1 (2004): 37–46.; and Christen Wemmer, Thomas H.
Kunz, and Virginia Hayssen, "Mammalian Sign," in Measuring and Monitoring Biological Diversity., by Don E
Wilson et al. (Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1996).
